The suspect affirms that his actions are the protection of freedom of expression, but the Brookline police accused him anyway
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- The owners of Tesla reported a man placing Elon Musk stickers on their cars in the police.
- The police found the man and charged him with degrading property a few days later.
- Man insists that his rights to freedom of expression justify placing the stickers on vehicles.
During the weekend, Massachusetts police received calls for a person placing stickers on cars in the suburbs of Boston in Brookline. But it was not your average type of decal “I like my Prius”. No, these stickers had an image of Elon Musk making a gesture a view like a Nazi salvation. And the stickerIf we can call it like this, targeted Teslas.
Now the police said they identified the suspect and charged him with degraded property. The suspect, however, argues that it is his right under the first amendment to place the stickers.
At least one Tesla owner captured an interaction with the man on the camera. In the short clip, the man is stationary on a bicycle and speaks with the owner of Tesla. “Why do you think you have the right to do this,” asks the owner. “This is my freedom of expression,” explains the cyclist.
Read: Dozen Teslas burned down the French dealer causing more than $ 730,000 in damages
Tesla’s driver brought this video to the police, who published it later online, asking for advice on the identity of the suspect. Now they say they found the individual on Wednesday and quoted it for six property counts.
We are not going to claim to be legal experts here, but it will be interesting to see how it takes place. Although an sticker does not necessarily fall under freedom of expression, it should be noted that the bumper stickers are generally protected by the first amendment – well, as long as you are the owner of the car on which you put them.
Interestingly, Tesla CEO Elon Musk weighed on the incident after the Brookline police service tweeted on this subject. Musk clearly said: “damaging others, alias vandalism, is not freedom of expression!” Fair point, although we are almost sure that the idea of Musk of “freedom of expression” is a little different when that implies something with which he does not agree.
In a 1991 case, an Alabama court denied the condemnation of a man who had what some believed to be a sticker of obscene bumper, judging that he was protected because he had “serious and political literary value”.
Will the same standard apply if anyone else applies the sticker? Could it be different if the suspect had simply placed a note, an advertisement or a photo on the car? Only time will tell us. Brookline police have reserved Randall and set their deposit at only $ 2,500.
Regarding crimes against Tesla and the owners of Tesla lately, at least it was quite discreet, unlike several others. No fiery cars or shocking land damage, just a guy who rolls on his bicycle, spreading his thoughts – whether someone asked them or not.
